Independence Day=2 days to integrate

On December 16, 1991 due to the fall of the Soviet Union, Kazakhstan followed the lead of other Soviet Republics and declared its independence. So in true Kazakhstani fashion we got two days (Wednesday and Thursday) off for the occasion.

Come a long way

Kazakhstan is still a very young nation but citizens who have lived through the Soviet rule can argue that it has come a long way since the early days of independence. The other day during my Russian lesson my tutor was telling me about how difficult life was in the first few years of independent Kazakhstan. Utilities that were once run by the U.S.S.R. no longer functioned since Soviet influence was out of the picture. For two to three years residents here faced shortages in electricity and in gas for cooking and heating. Now that winter has begun here it painful to imagine how those first few winters were spent. These days those basic utilities are available in the city as Kazakhstan takes advantage of its abundance of oil, gas, and mineral reserves.

Our independence

During English discussion club, following the two day break, some locals and I got to talking about independence in the U.S. and what it means. Two of the locals had lived in the U.S. for a summer as part of a program called Work and Travel. I asked them what they missed the most about the States. One woman answered, "Freedom, it's in the air. There is freedom in everything. You can do what you want and be who you want". I thought it was an interesting answer because if someone asked me right now what I missed the most I probably would not have the same reply. Sometimes other people remind you of what you are grateful for and should not take for granted.

Celebrating

In order to not take my two days off work for granted I enjoyed them to the fullest. On Wednesday, I caught up with a few chores at home and just relaxed. That evening I met up with volunteers for dinner and ending up going out to the disco at night. The disco, called Cinema, is attached to a movie theater. It was a fun night of dancing to a lot of loud electronic/dance music.

At Cinema with volunteers and local friends.

The next day I got up bright and early to get ready and head off to the Burguluk Mountains about 40 minutes away from Shymkent. I was a bit apprehensive about the trip since the weather has been funny. One day it's snowing and the next day it's gross out, but it turned out to be great weather. There was fresh snow on the mountains and it was sunny out. I went with local friends who regularly attend English club: Olessya, Tanya, Sasha, Olga, Artur and Masha. And we were accompanied by our very own alpinists, Vitalya, Saveli, Dima and Vadim. It was a beautiful but difficult 3+ hour hike up through the snow.

If you thought hiking up was difficult, getting down can be just as tricky.

In Kazakhstan there is chai time no matter where you are.